Groundbreaking ceremony kicks off construction

Construction on the new Multidisciplinary Science Building officially began 3 p.m., Thursday with the groundbreaking ceremony.\n"Breaking new intellectual ground is a way of life for IU faculty and students," IU President Adam Herbert said in a speech at the ceremony.\nThe 80,000 square-foot building dedicated to interdisciplinary science research will have four chemistry labs, three biochemistry labs, a biophysics lab, a genomics lab (the study of genes) and proteomics lab (the study of proteins).\nThe funding for the building was provided by the Simon family in the amount of $9 million and from Dick and Ruth Johnson in the amount of $1 million.\nA tunnel will connect the new building to Lindley Hall which houses the IU computer science department.\nThe MSB will be built between Myers Hall and the Chemistry building. About half of the building will be modular so it can be easily reconfigured. Construction will begin this month and end in 2007.\nHerbert said the MSB will serve to enhance the University, the state and the community. \n"The environment of this building will allow IU faculty and students to push forward new frontiers of knowledge," Herbert said.\nBloomington Mayor Mark Kruzan said the building will improve people's lives by being a place of research, being a place of employment and being a place of teaching.\n"I want to thank the taxpayers because you will get a tremendous return on your investment," Kruzan said.\nKumble Subbaswamy, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, said he views the building as a bridge. It will link the biology and chemistry departments to the neuroscience department and the medical school, Subbaswamy said. It will also bridge the University to the community by sharing research with various science institutions in Bloomington.\nLisa Pratt is a professor of geology and was the associate dean for research in the College of Arts and Sciences when the floor plans for the building were being drafted. She said the MSB is clearly a good idea for the Bloomington campus because it allows researchers to work and communicate easier since the different labs and offices will be in the same building. \n"This is the first time we have broken away from the tradition of constructing buildings for separate disciplines," Pratt said.\nElizabeth Raff, a biology professor, said the MSB is filling an urgent need for more laboratory space so the project was quickly moved forward. Raff said there is very little space to work in the older IU labs.\nSubbaswamy said potential monetary donors were solicited in order to raise the necessary funds for construction.\n"My family has always been a big supporter of IU. We believe in research," Deborah Simon said.\nRuth Johnson's husband and children graduated from IU.\n"Dick and I are very excited to see science research be used in business to benefit all the citizens of Indiana," said Johnson.\n-- Contact staff writer Karen Yancey at kaeyance@indiana.edu.